Roof and wall panels are typically attached to supports or studs by nailing through the panels directly into the support. However, such means of attachment can be insufficient to secure the panels in conditions of high winds, e.g., a tornado, hurricane, or during an occurrence of seismic activity. These extreme meteorologic or geological conditions can result in damage to a building which would be prevented by a more secure fastening of the roof or wall panels to its underlying support.
Various brackets and fasteners have been developed to address the separation of panels from a supporting member under the stress of certain conditions such as high winds. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,437,132 to Meyers describes a generally J-shaped bracket which fastens a roof or wall panel to its underlying support truss or wall stud. The bracket has an elongated main body which extends along one side of the width of the support, and two flat plates which are folded in opposite directions to meet the outside face of each of two roof or wall panels.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,318,261 to Smith also describes a generally J-shaped clip for securing a roof panel to a support member or joist. The Smith '261 patent describes a clip having a lower leg for connection to a joist, a shank for extending upwardly along one side of a joist, and between two adjacent roof or wall panels, wherein the shank forms two upper legs which can be folded in opposite directions and over adjacent panels to hold them down.
Similarly, U.S. Pat. No. 3,500,604 to Vandall describes a tiedown clip having two flaps extending from a shank which are folded over in opposite directions to adjacent wall or roof panels. The shank of the tiedown clip in the '604 patent includes a notched recess which receives the edge of a support member.
Nellessen, Jr., U.S. Pat. No. 5,423,156, describes a strap for installation over sheathing to hold the sheathing to an underlying support structural frame member through use of interconnecting bands and a saddle. The strap described in the '156 patent extends across the entire width of the sheathing and requires the use of a pair of saddle members and connecting bands which are received by the strap and the saddle members.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,390,460 also describes a strapping means for securing a roof panel to a support beam wherein the strapping means extends across the entire width of the roof panel. One end of the strapping means forms a J-shaped hook which conforms to the shape of the beam and is secured thereto by nailing.
A clip for locating and maintaining co-planar adjacent non-interfitting edges of panels is described by Roland in U.S. Pat. No. 2,855,640. The clip is formed by a vertically disposed body which extends perpendicularly to the plane of the floor panels it is designed to maintain co-planar. The body extends into a pair of tabs which extend laterally in both directions over a floor panel to prevent buckling of the panels at the joint.
Wall fasteners having flaps or wings which extend in opposite directions on the outside of the wall are described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 523,359, 1,619,947, and 1,737,100. These flaps, however, do not connect to a member which enwraps a support member behind the wall.
U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,440,791 and 4,527,375 describe strapping brackets for floor decking. The '791 patent describes a bracket which is fitted around three sides of the support member under the floor decking and extends through slots made in the decking to form a pair of flaps which are folded inwardly, in a manner to overlap each other, and secured together. The strap of the '375 patent extends across the width of the deck board and extends along the sides, but does not enwrap the support member underlying the deck board.
Thus, there is a need in the building construction industry for a connector system which can prevent dislodgment of roof or wall panels and wall studs from their support members during extreme wind conditions or during seismic activity.